Misplaced Revenge
by Aiden Ravelle
Summary: Someone comes back from Neal's past. Neal!Whump
1. Chapter 1

I don't own White Collar. Hope you enjoy!

The plan had been going well; Jonathon Collins and his lackey Gary were inside getting the money. TJ Becker, the getaway driver was in the car watching Jonathon's seven year old daughter Isabelle. TJ wasn't sure why Collins had brought his daughter, but he was keeping an eye on her while the two were inside.

TJ didn't know Gary's last name, but knew he was Collins right hand man. The plan was Gary and Collins would go in and steal a briefcase, which had a huge amount of money. TJ would get 10% of the cut once he had driven them to safety.

TJ looked at the young girl behind him who was coloring in a book with crayons. He turned his head and noticed Collins and Gary running up to get in the car, and then everything went black. He came to, hearing sobs behind him.

"It's ok sweetie, you'll be ok," he heard Collins from behind him.

He looked to his left and noticed another car had hit the driver's side of their car. He winced in pain as he moved over the passenger seat to get out. Gary was outside the car, getting handcuffed by security. The rest of security was checking on the driver of the other car, trying to bring back to life. Collins was in the backseat tending to Isabelle who was badly injured.

"Collins?" TJ asked quietly and confused.

"You were supposed to watch her!" Collins screamed pulling out a gun, TJ noticed it, and against the pain started running, running for his life.

TJ escaped with a few broken ribs and a concussion. Over the next 10 years he remembered this incident, and wondered if there had been anything he could have done to protect Isabelle. He did some digging and found that she had become permanently paralyzed from the waist down. She moved in with her grandmother, as her father went to jail. Today, on the 10 year anniversary of the accident, Collins, along with his lackey, were released from prison.


	2. Chapter 2

Neal sat at the conference table, his feet up on the table waiting for the meeting to start. Everyone was here except Peter. Peter walked in the room and gave Neal a look to take his feet off the table.

Neal complied without complaining.

"This guy," Peter pulled up an image on the screen, "is Jonathon Collins."

No one noticed the look that flickered in Neal's eyes.

"He was just released from prison, 4 hours ago. We've kept an eye on him to see what he would do. In the span of 4 hours, he's already put out an order to have a TJ Becker kidnapped. We don't know anything about this TJ Becker, and a name search comes up with nothing, which means this is an alias. Neal, why would there be no information on an alias?"

Neal looked up in thought and realized he just asked because Neal had dozens of aliases.

"Generally, if an alias is long lasting, documents are made; it's traceable in case someone looks them up. Some aliases are one time only, where they just want to do this one deal or heist. It also protects a person, in cases like this. Collins was in prison for 10 years, which means Becker has probably not gone by Becker in at least 10, which makes him almost untraceable. The only thing they could do is follow DNA if there had been any, or search by face, if they have a picture or can draw well enough."

Peter let the group think for a moment, "Jones, you follow Collins and see what he does. Diana, talk to the prison and see if he ever said anything about Becker or who he could be. If he's looking to kidnap him, even if he's a criminal, he'd be safer in our hands than running on the street chancing being kidnapped. Neal, talk to your sources as well. The rest of you keep looking at the files. Let's go."

The group filed out of the room, leaving Neal and Peter. 

"I'm going to go outside and make a few calls," Neal told Peter, who nodded in response.

Neal got out of the building and started his walk.

"Mozz," he started on the phone, "Jonathon Collins is out of jail. He's trying to have TJ Becker kidnapped. I guess he still blames him."

"You know it wasn't your fault, Neal. You have to tell the suit. If you don't, I will, for your protection. Collins is a seriously dangerous guy, especially when it comes to matters of his daughter. He had his daughters ex-boyfriend murdered while he was in prison. He has connections." 

"Fine, I'll tell Peter," Neal closed his phone and headed back to the office. He turned around a corner and was met with a baseball bat to the face.


	3. Chapter 3

Neal groaned as he was brought back to reality. He had a pounding headache, he remembered the baseball bat.

It took a few minutes but he finally realized that he was tied up. The room was completely dark, leaving him sightless.

He waited, he wasn't sure how long, before someone finally turned on a light.

"It's been a while, Becker. Or should I say, Neal Caffrey?" Collins held up Neal's wallet, "Looks like you've come a long way since then," he also held up Neal's anklet, which had been cut and smashed to bits.

"Collins," Neal responded.

"You were supposed to watch my daughter. You let her get hurt. She can never walk again because of you!" Collins hissed angrily.

"It wasn't my fault some dumbass drove into your car," Neal responded.

"That dumbass died, but you roamed free, not staying to help Isabelle, and making us get caught," Collins informed Neal.

"You were going to shoot me if I stayed," Neal spoke back.

"You'll be lucky if all I do now if shoot you. You didn't save my daughter, and now I'm going to make your life hell, well at least your remaining few days," enlightened Neal on the situation. He left the room, leaving Neal in darkness.

He couldn't feel the ties on his arms enough to get free. He couldn't see around to try to make an escape. For now, all he could do was wait. Wait for Peter or wait for Collins to come back.


	4. Chapter 4

Peter sighed as he saw the Marshalls number light up on his phone.  
"Hello? No, he was just here a few minutes ago; I don't see why he would have run. I'll let you know."

Neal's anklet had gone offline a few minutes before. He said he was going to make a few calls, and that was the last he'd seen him. He hadn't been gone for more than 20 minutes at this point.

He called Jones and Diana into his office.

"Neal's tracker is offline. We need to locate him, now. I don't think he'd run, but we can't be sure. Go look around and see if you find him, I'm going to make a few calls."

If Neal was going to make calls, one of his first contacts would be Mozzie. Mozzie knew what was going on in the streets as well as having many connections he could check into.

"Haversham," Mozz answered the phone.

"Mozzie," Peter started.

"Suit," Mozz responded.

"Neal's tracker is offline," Peter informed him.

"I told him to talk to you, dammit Neal," Mozzie cursed into the phone worried about his friend. He then told Peter the story of Becker and Collins, and revealed, "Neal was TJ Becker."

"So it clearly wasn't Neal's fault, but Collins wants revenge. With the driver of the other car dead, that left Neal with the blame and revenge," Peter concluded with worry starting to set in.

"Neal is in serious trouble, Suit. I suggest you find him fast," Mozzie hung up the phone, leaving Peter to wonder where his CI was taken.


	5. Chapter 5

Neal wasn't sure what time it was or even really where he was. He dozed off a few times, but it all stayed dark. His head started feeling better, but he knew he probably had a few bruises.

Eventually both Gary and Collins came in.

"You are in for a world of hurt, but don't worry, if your wounds don't kill you, we'll have to before your FBI friends find us," Collins started.

Neal knew that nothing he said would stop what was coming, so he stayed quiet.

Gary pulled out the bat, and swung it in his hands.

"I'm going to give you a taste of what my daughter felt, plus a few more bruises here and there. She was paralyzed from the waist down. She's unable to control her bladder or bowels. She lives bound to a wheelchair, if you even call it a life," Collins pulled Neal up and moved the ties on his arms so his arms were now in front of him. He shoved him back to the ground, face first. He tried to catch himself, but it was hard with his hands bound.

It wasn't a matter of seconds before he felt the bat come down on his back. He heard a snap as pain radiated through his back and legs. He was hit twice more by Gary, and kicked in the head by Collins before he was left again in the darkness. He hadn't dared to try to move for at least a few hours. His back stayed in constant pain, and when he finally tried to turn over, he realized he couldn't move his legs. Numbness consumed his feet and calves, while his thighs and back screamed in pain. He used the muscles in his upper body to roll over. He wasn't sure what was going to happen next, but he spent his time trying and failing to move his legs.

Eventually Gary came back in with a tray of food. They left the lights on so he could eat. It barely had anything, just a piece of bread and some water, but Neal was thankful he was given anything at all. His throat was parched so he took a drink of the water first. It tasted a little weird. He knew it could be drugged, but he was so thirsty it didn't matter. The bread was so dry, and with the pain surging through him, he could barely keep it in his stomach.

He eventually passed out but awoke to his meal coming back up. With his legs not wanting to move and his arms tied up, he had trouble angling himself right and he ended up just sitting in a puddle of his half-digested meal.

It seemed like days before anyone came back.

"Let's get you cleaned up," Collins told Neal, as Gary picked Neal up by the ties on his wrists.

He was dragged to a white room, that was simple, just white tile walls, a drain, and a hose. He was stripped down to boxers, hosed down, and dragged down a plain hallway, to a weird looking door.

"You'll have a lot of fun in here, I think. You'll be begging me to kill you after an hour in here," Collins gave a sadistic smile as Gary hoisted Neal up and threw him into the room.

The air was bitter with frost, almost choking him.  
"Freezer?" Neal muttered he soon realized with his recent hose down, he would begin to stick, but he couldn't stand. He tried to move to the door to escape, but the cold air was suffocating. He managed to sit up holding himself up with his hands so only his legs and hands were in contact with the snowy surface. He was twisted around, as both his hands were still tied, so his stomach and back ached. His hands hurt as well, but we was for once glad he didn't have feeling in his legs. The numbness had spread to his thighs and butt as well, so he couldn't really feel anything from the waist down. This also didn't help going to the bathroom, another reason he really needed that hose down.

He was weak, but he knew if he laid down he would regret it. He wondered if Peter would be here soon. Peter always looked for him, he had hope, but he didn't know how long he had been here, would Peter ever make it? Should he surrender to the cold?

The hour passed and Gary came back in and picked up him. Some skin from his hands which had lost feeling from the cold, and his legs, had stuck to the freezer, ripping spots of him open, leaving a blood trail as Gary dragged him.

He was passed out by the time Gary got him back to the first room, which he threw Neal into and turned out the light.


	6. Chapter 6

After the first 72 hours of not sleeping, Diana had sent Peter home to sleep. He didn't sleep very well, but the few hours he had gave him a renewed sense of hope that something would come through today. He walked into the office with an extra-large coffee in hand.

"Any news?" He asked Diana and Jones.

"We just found out that Collin's right hand man purchased a junk car from a place down the road. We can go talk to them," Jones mentioned.

"Good, Diana go get some rest, Jones, you come with me."

They headed off, and when they arrived they talked to the salesman.

"What are you interested in today fellas?" The salesman started his pitch but was cut short by Peter.

"FBI," he held up his badge, "We had some questions about a guy you sold a car to."

They searched through the files, "We always take a copy of the license when we sell a car."

They took down the address and went to go check it out.

"This could be a trap, why would they be stupid enough to leave the address?"

Peter worried, "Either they are so wrapped up in revenge that Neal doesn't deserve, or they think it won't get back to us in time."

"Could be both," Jones voiced Peters thought.

He wasn't sure what to expect, but he knew his friend's life depended on it.


	7. Chapter 7

Neal awoke to a kick to the face; he groaned putting his hand on his face. His hand had regained some feeling, he wasn't sure but he might have frost bite.

"I've spent 10 years planning what to do with you. There's a nice cliff outside, and a car. The car is to represent the car that hit my daughter. You will be in it, a brick on the gas, headed toward the cliff. If you don't die on impact, you will die from your injuries soon after," Collins informed him.

"Please," Neal muttered, unsure to even himself if he meant please stop or please end his life.

"I'll see you in hell," Collins muttered before Gary dragged him away. He had no energy left to fight. Once he was outside he was blinded by the sun as his skin scraped on the rocks and sticks on the ground. He saw the car, an old rusty black thing that looked like it would fall to pieces. Gary took the ties on Neal's wrists which had rubbed raw and replaced them with duct tape. He was then taped to the back seat of the car, preventing escape. Not like Neal could escape with no feeling in his legs, barely any food in who knows how long, and loss of energy from everything else that happened.

The car was turned on and set in park, and then a brick was tied to the gas pedal. The engine revved loudly waiting to be put into motion.

Just then, a car pulled up and he heard screaming, "FBI, Get on the ground!"

Gary put the car into drive and jumped out.

"Can't save him now anyway," Collins laughed as the scene unfolded.

As Peter realized Neal was in the car headed for a cliff, he also realized he was not fast enough to catch up. He shot at the left side tire, hoping the blow would send it sideways and into the bushes nearby.

The car started spinning and rolled over. Luckily it stopped before the cliff, but now Neal was sitting upside down in the car.

"I doubt he could have survived that, especially after everything else we put him through," Collins said as Jones cuffed him.

Peter had a gun in one hand pointed at Gary while he used his other hand to call an ambulance.

As soon as Jones got Collins into the car and started cuffing Gary, Peter ran toward the car hoping his friend was safe.

He noticed Neal was duct taped by the wrists and arms to the seat, leaving his body dangling upside down curved in the middle.

"Neal?" his CI didn't respond. He untapped him from the car and managed to get him out from the seat.

He laid him on the ground and sat down with his head in his lap. There was a pulse but it was slow. He finally started noticing how bad Neal looked. His entire backside was bruised, bruise on the head, some on his arms as well. He also had scrapes and scabs all over. He looked sickly pale especially against the dark bruises and red spots covering him.

Peter saw Neal's hand twitch, "Neal?"

Neal blinked a few times slowly. He then whispered, "Peter, thank you. Don't worry, I'll be with Kate," he coughed a few times before going limp.

"Neal? NEAL!" Peter tried to find the pulse again but failed; he moved around and started CPR on his friend.

Jones, who finished arresting Collins and Gary, came up, "Ambulance should be here any minute."

Just as he said that, the ambulance came up and the crew got out and got to work. They pushed Peter aside, and he felt useless just sitting there. He wanted to take a few rounds out on the men arrested in the car, but he knew it wouldn't be right.

The crew didn't allow him to go with Neal, and he couldn't go in the car with Jones because he'd kill the two in back. He walked around and waited for Diana who he'd called and updated.

He decided to take a look around the building. It looked like an old house. There was a kitchen, living room, bathroom and bedroom. There was one bed, one couch, a fridge, but other than that, the main part of the house was empty. There was a hallway though, that opened up with a large door. It looked like it had been added on to the house at some point. He took a look and the first room in the hall was an empty room, but when he turned the light on he noticed blood and vomit on the floor.

'Is this where they kept Neal?' he thought to himself feeling sick.

He went down to the next room which looked like it had been turned into a large freezer. The walls were metal and frost coated the room. He noticed more blood and what looked like skin on the floor. He thought of his friend and wondered what kind of things they put him through. He kneeled down for a moment, overcome with worry for his CI's life. He calmed himself down and continued. There was only one room left and it looked like a supply closet. He opened it up and noticed piles of duct tape, rope, bats and other weapons, probably all used on Neal.

He felt his phone buzz in his pocket, "Here boss," he heard Diana on the other side of the line. He closed the closet door and prepared himself for the agonizing ride to the hospital. He knew it would probably be a while before anyone would be allowed in Neal's room, if he even survived the trauma and was revived.

He arrived at the car and sat down; he was quiet, almost in shock of what happened and what he had seen.

"Boss, you know we are all worried about him, it's ok to take time to process it. But first you need to make some calls. Also, I got you some lunch because I don't know when you'll eat again," Diana greeted him bringing him back to focus.

He nodded and got to his calls. First was El, who was worried and said she'd meet him up at the hospital. Next was Mozzie, who barely responded to Peters words and hung up without a goodbye. Peter wasn't sure if Mozzie was just worried or if he was mad at Peter for not finding Neal faster. He wouldn't be surprised if it was both. Last he called June. He knew she cared for him like a son, and even though she was out of town at the moment, he wanted to inform her of the situation.

Peter spent the remainder of the ride barely picking at his food. Every time he took a bite, he felt like it would come back up.

They finally arrived at the hospital, and Peter all but ran into the building waiting to hear news about his friend.

"He's alive," the nurse said, taking them to a small private waiting room.


	8. Chapter 8

The next few weeks were a blur to Peter. The private waiting room had become a second home to Peter, who stayed there almost constantly. It had reached a point that the nurses had brought a cot in for him to sleep so he didn't have to keep sleeping upright in the chairs. Mozz visited often, even though he hated hospitals. El had stayed the first few days but had to go back to work. She'd visit for a few hours each night making sure Peter was eating.  
Hughes had given him time off knowing he would be too distracted to focus on any new cases. Peter spent his time reading, which was one of the few things that would take his mind off of Neal. Other times he would just sit at Neal's side and wonder when he would wake up.

A lot of the bruising had healed as well as many of the cuts and scrapes. Many times the doctor came in giving medical information which made no sense to Peter, but at this point he knew that Neal could be permanently paralyzed, but it could be temporary, they wouldn't know until he wakes up and they try physical therapy and possibly another surgery. He might also have frostbite from the freezer he was locked in; they also won't know that until he wakes up. They also are unsure of how he will be mentally after he wakes up. The trauma could have permanently affected his personality.

Peter talked to his friend, unsure if he could hear or not. Peter told him about Collins case, about baseball games, about Satchmo's adventure escaping the house. It was a way to pass the time, and it helped Peter cope.

"Sir?" The nurse asked shaking Peters arm. He had gotten tired and went to take a nap in the waiting room.  
"Hmm?" He rolled over and sat up.

"His heart rate is increasing, which could mean he's going to wake up soon," the nurse informed him.

Peter nodded and went into Neal's room. "Neal?" he asked quietly to see if it would rouse the unconscious man.

The heart monitor beeped a bit faster so Peter kept talking to see if Neal would fully wake up, "Neal, it's me, Peter. You are okay now, alright? You can wake up. You are in the hospital. Everyone has been here to visit, even Hughes. We all want you to wake up and come back. I miss you," he admitted.

He looked at the man in the bed, he looked so young. Finally, he saw an eyelid twitch.

"Neal?" he asked again, hoping for a response.

Neal slowly opened his eyes and focused on Peter.

"Peter?" he quietly choked out.

"Yeah Neal, let's get you some water," Peter put a glass to Neal's lips and helped him take a few sips of water.

"I knew you'd find me," Neal whispered to Peter giving a weak smile.

"We almost didn't find you in time," Peter admitted.

Neal looked at his wrists, red scars wrapped around; a reminder of his kidnapping.

He rubbed his fingers against his thumb, "my fingertips are numb," Neal observed, with a questioning voice behind it.  
"Your fingertips might always be numb, you got frostbite from a freezer," Peter replied answering his friend.

Neal shivered and nodded, "How long was I out?"

"Over a month," Peter confessed.

"And how long was I…?" Neal trailed off.

Peter knew what his friend was asking, "It was 3-4 days. Do you remember what happened?"

Neal nodded, "there are some gaps, but some things are there," he closed his eyes trying to focus.

"The doctor said that you had been given laxatives and had lost about 10 pounds while you were there. You had bruises, cuts, and scrapes all over your body. We weren't sure about the damage from the frostbite, but we saw the freezer they had you in. When I got there, you were duct taped to the seat of the car with the car headed off a cliff. I shot the tire out, hoping it would put you in the bushes, but the car flipped. I pulled you out of the car and your heart stopped, and I performed CPR until the ambulance arrived. You coded 3 more times that day," Peter updated his friend. He felt a bit guilty about the car flipping, but he knew it was better than the car flying off a 50 ft. drop.

Neal thought for a moment, unsure if he was ready to ask, but Peter seemed to read his mind, "They aren't sure about your back yet. The doctor is hopeful that they can bring your feeling back and have you back to walking but it will take time, and maybe another surgery or two. It all depends on how your body reacts to the treatments."

Neal gave a small smile at the news of hope and replied, "Guess you don't have to worry about me running now," he quietly joked.

"You might be stuck doing mortgage fraud cases for a while," Peter half joked back.

"Hey Peter," Neal said after a few moments, "I feel like I saw Kate, like she was there calling for me," He admitted to his friend.

"You told me you'd be ok, you'd be with Kate," Peter said quietly looking down. Kate had always been a touchy subject even more so since the explosion.

"You won't get rid of me that easy," Neal smiled at Peter to cheer him up.

"I just thought I'd lost you, you died in my arms," Peter looked away.

"Hey, look at me." Neal told Peter, "you can't get rid of me that easily."

"Says the man who keeps running from me," Peter said sarcastically, starting to cheer up. He knew Neal needed him to stay positive right now.

"I'm sorry you had to go through this," Neal told Peter.

"Neal, this was a mad man after your life for nothing you did. You have nothing to be sorry about, just focus on healing," Peter urged.

"As I sat in that room, I wondered if there was more I could have done to protect Isabelle in the car. Or if maybe this was karma for the things I had done in the past," Neal admitted.

"You did not deserve this. Sure you stole things, and made forgeries, but you never killed anyone, you never hurt others. You don't deserve this, Neal. I don't care how long it takes, I will convince you of that and I will be here to help you walk again." 

"Thank you," Neal gave a small smile. He had a long way to go to be able to walk again, and to be able to get past what happened with Collins, but he knew he had a great friend beside him to help him through it.


End file.
